Many organizations and businesses, such as those that require or provide photo printing, personal wireless communications and data storage services, are confronted with the problem of transmitting and storing very large volumes of data. For example, due to the ever increasing availability of digital cameras, due in part to reduced cost and inclusion in other electronic device such as cellular telephones and personal digital assistants (PDAs), large numbers of digital images are being created. In general, the amount of image data is approaching the order of petabytes (1015 bytes). Because of the high costs associated with the transmission and storage of large quantities of data is substantial, it is economically beneficial to increase the efficiency of data compression used for images.
For example, the JPEG format is used for compressing the vast majority of digital images. JPEG allows for the reduction of filed sizes by re-encoding the images with the settings set for higher compression. While this is an effective way to reduce bandwidth and storage, it causes irreversible loss in image quality. Thus, before using this approach it is necessary to consider how much degradation is acceptable, and to carefully evaluate possible unexpected consequences, including lawsuits for damaging content.
The drawings referred to in this description should not be understood as being drawn to scale except if specifically noted.